Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 25

Devanagari script

सीदन्ति चाग्निहोत्राणि गुरौ पूजा प्रणश्यति । सीदन्ति मानवा धर्माः कलौ प्राप्ते युधिष्ठिर

Transliteration

sīdanti cāgnihotrāṇi gurau pūjā praṇaśyati | sīdanti mānavā dharmāḥ kalau prāpte yudhiṣṭhira

Translation

พิธีอัคนิโหตรจักเสื่อมถอย การบูชาครูจักสูญสิ้น; และเมื่อกาลียุคมาถึง โอ ยุธิษฐิระ ธรรมบัญญัติของมนุษย์จักสั่นคลอน

Word by Word

• सीदन्ति: decline/sink
• सीदन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सद् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष, बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Conjunction/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• अग्निहोत्राणि: Agnihotra rites
• अग्निहोत्राणि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अग्निहोत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• गुरौ: in/with regard to the guru
• गुरौ: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गुरु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन

• पूजा: worship/reverence
• पूजा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पूजा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• प्रणश्यति: perishes/is destroyed
• प्रणश्यति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + नश् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन

• सीदन्ति: decline
• सीदन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सद् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष, बहुवचन

• मानवाः: human
• मानवाः: Karta (Qualifier of subject/कर्तृ-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मानव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (धर्माः इति विशेष्यस्य)

• धर्माः: duties/virtues
• धर्माः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• कलौ: in Kali (age)
• कलौ: Adhikarana (Time/Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कलि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन

• प्राप्ते: when (Kali) has come
• प्राप्ते: Adhikarana (Locative absolute/सति-सप्तमी)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्र + आप् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (PPP) ‘प्राप्त’, पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सति-सप्तमी (locative absolute) कलौ सह

• युधिष्ठिर: O Yudhiṣṭhira
• युधिष्ठिर: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युधिष्ठिर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति (Vocative), एकवचन

Speaker

Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya (contextual attribution within the Revākhaṇḍa narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) tīrtha-field (general)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Yudhiṣṭhira

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A once-bright agnihotra fire dwindling to embers; a neglected guru’s pādukā with fallen flowers; people rushing past; a darkening sky labeled Kali approaching.

Characters & Entities

• Agnihotra
• guru-pūjā
• Kali (age)
• Yudhiṣṭhira

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The health of dharma is tied to sacred discipline—when daily rites and reverence for teachers fade, moral life deteriorates.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No particular tīrtha is mentioned in this verse; it is a Kali-yuga prognosis within Revā Khaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Agnihotra is referenced as a key Vedic rite whose decline is lamented; maintaining such disciplines is implied as protective of dharma.